Porsche takes the fight to the Aston Martin Rapide with its upgraded 562bhp, 193mph super-tourer

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Maybe it's mere coincidence. We suspect not. Earlier this year, Aston Martin released its uprated Rapide S, pushing the power of its V12 four-door from 500bhp to 550bhp. Which was just a few more horsepowers than the PorschePanamera Turbo S.

Now Porsche has announced the facelifted, even-more-powerful, even faster Panamera Turbo S. Power from its twin-turbo 4.2-litre V8 rises to 562bhp, 20bhp more than the current Turbo S and a dozen horses ahead of that pesky Rapide.

Porsche has liberated that extra power through a new brace of turbochargers with larger compressors, and increased injection pressure by 20 bar. Torque also rises by 37lb ft to a meaty 553lb ft, with an overboost function raising it to 590lb ft for short bursts.

All of which adds up to an indecently rapid machine. The upgraded Panamera will do 0-62mph in an official 3.8 seconds - though remember Porsche is notoriously conservative with its acceleration figures - and a top speed of 193mph. Enough to make the 190mph, 0-62mph-in-4.9-secs Rapide look pedestrian.

Despite the power hike, Porsche claims economy of the Panamera Turbo S has risen 11 per cent to 27.7mpg.

The facelifted Panamera Turbo S will officially debut at the Tokyo show later this month, and will land in the UK in January with prices starting at £131,049. That's £15k less than the Aston Rapide S. Which would you take?